Reviews of Skin Care and Beauty

This is my one and only holy grail for skincare. With this, I can do without facials, expensive makeup, expensive skincare. After a month of Retin-A, I can solemnly and very sadly admit that all that I have spent on luxury skincare and makeup has never matched up to this, and probably never will. I discovered this by accident online a month ago, and decided to plunge into it after reading rave reviews about it from both customers and dermatologists about it's proven anti-aging potency. I am currently 26, and have noticed fine lines around my eye area that i really want to fix. But what plagues me most since my teenage years was whiteheads and clogged pores. I hate how my pores look up close, and I hate feeling bumps on my face from time to time, especially when i use unsuitable facial products. After just a week of Retin-A my skin has almost completely cleared up - I still have about 10 whiteheads on my face at any one time, but this is already a 90% reduction. My skin is smooth like never before! When I met my facialists they noted such a marked change that they have to prescribe new treatments, and colleagues have been asking me how I got my face to be so smooth. Now I can enjoy moisturisers, lotions, rich eye creams, and even makeup like never before, without having to worry about clogging my pores so much anymore. Blush and powder look ssooo much better on smooth skin too! So now for the side effects. For me, i'm lucky to just have experienced some sensitivity and dryness (flakies around my lip area, lower cheeks, eyes) in the past weeks, but this is wearing off. I stop applying it once i feel some rawness in my skin, so i'm quite careful with this. On average, this comes up to applying it about 2-3 times a week. Another thing, I can no longer use peeling masks or scrubs as liberally as i did in the past, which is a good thing i guess, since i never really knew when to hold back when i get new whiteheads like every other day. I didn't experience any purging period, which was lucky. Using this, I continue to be extremely careful with sunscreen - i always use SPF 50 when i go out to work or play, sometimes SPF 32 when i'm just lingering at home doing nothing. Price-wise, it is dirt-cheap where I am (about 12 USD?). I also get a doctor friend to prescribe it for me. Even if it is slightly pricier in other places, I absolutely recommend giving this a shot because it can easily cost tonnes less than loads of expensive anti-aging or anti-acne skincare. I would recommend starting with a low concentration first to play it safe.

My dermatologist prescribed this for me once my rosacea was under control and it was time to repair the damage to my skin. Untreated, my condition had cause my pores to enlarge and it had begun to make the appearance of my skin look like that of an orange peel The very first day I used the retin A I was shocked. On just the first day my skin already looked rather tightened and practically better then it had in highschool. However as I kept using it, like most other people here my skin began peeling (which is the basic idea of Retin A) and flaking. The more I used it, the more my skin flaked off. Unsettled, I sought the advice of an aesthetician who confirmed that it is supposed to do that and if you stick it out for a few months you wont be disapopointed. So I am continuing to stick with it and I can definitely tell it is all but eliminating my fine lines. As for the hyperpigmentation from the left over acne it has yet to help with that but should. I had the impression that you only are supposed to use Retin A until your condition improves because of how sensitive to sun it can make it and because its purpose is to act as a mini peel. Either way, I am slowly seeing improvements that I am really excited about. The key is to use as little of it as possible. It isnt like moisturizer where more is better. Use as little of the Retin A as you can handle and stick it out as long as you can.

Date Purchased: 05/2010Price Paid: $50Recommend: Yes

Pros:

Really does work especially on fine lines and even deeper ones. It even seems to help with the texture of the skin.

Cons:

Very expensive, can make your skin feel like its burning, it will make your skin look dry and make it flakey and peel, you need to limit your sun exposure.

I have a lot of friends who use Retin A and their skin looks amazing; really smooth and clear. I hoped when I started using it, it would do the same for my skin, but no luck. Pretty much all it did was make my skin peel. I used it for almost a year and it never stopped peeling, so I always looked dry and flakey, which is not attractive. I think it just does not work on some skin types, so you should consider your skin type before deciding to use Retin A. My skin is dry and it just never helped me.